Ala.-Huntsville races to best start ever

Notes: Campbell's buzzer-beater helps Chargers move to 11-1

The University of Alabama-Huntsville is off to its best start in program history (11-1) following the Chargers’ 74-72 win -- thanks to a buzzer-beating shot by Zane Campbell -- against Harding on Dec. 17. The Chargers boast the best record in the Gulf South Conference as the lone one-loss team in the league.

Campbell netted a season-high 23 points in the game, and led the Chargers in rebounds (six) for the third consecutive game. Down 12 points with just 6:50 left in the game, the sophomore tallied 11 points by himself in less than four minutes, sparking UAH to a 17-3 run.

The victory came one day after the Chargers downed defending league champion Arkansas Tech in GSC crossover action. Campbell (14.2 ppg) is one of three Chargers scoring in double-digits, along with Jaime Smith (14.9 ppg) and Josh Magette (13.0 ppg).

The sixth-ranked Chargers have a hiatus before opening the New Year with three home games in six days.

Need to Know

After suffering through a four-game losing streak, Johnson C. Smith University rediscovered its winning ways with a 3-0 mark last week behind the stellar play of junior guard Trevin Parks. Parks notched back-to-back 35-point performances as the Golden Bulls opened Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association play with wins against St. Paul’s and Virginia State. To highlight the week, Parks sank a game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer against VSU. He also scored 14 of the Golden Bulls’ 15 points in overtime as they improved to 2-0 in league play. A native of Hickory, N.C., Parks was selected CIAA Player of the Week and has scored in double-figures in every game he has played. He also leads the Golden Bulls in scoring with 18.6 points per game.

Senior guard Nick Wolf garnered Sunshine State Conference Player-of-the-Week honors after helping Rollins College to a pair of wins at the Great Western Shootout in Las Vegas. The Tars handed No. 5 Central Washington its first loss of the season behind a 30-point, eight-rebound effort from Wolf. A native of Cincinnati, Ohio, Wolf followed with 25 points and 13 rebounds in an 80-70 win against Western Washington. Wolf, who also was named most valuable player of the tournament, shot 67 percent from the field in the two games. Wolf’s 55 points on the weekend moved him into 11th place on the Tars’ all-time scoring list with 1,559 points as he surpassed his uncle, Rollins College Hall of Famer Dan Wolf. Nick needs just 13 points to move into the top 10.

Lincoln Memorial University’s D’Mario Curry reached the 1,000-point plateau in record-setting fashion as he tallied a Turner Arena single-game record 41 points against Catawba last week. A senior forward from Detroit, Curry also grabbed 21 rebounds along with seven assists and four steals as the No. 19 Railsplitters moved to 9-0. Curry, who leads the squad with 18.8 points and 12.3 rebounds per game, was named South Atlantic Conference Player of the Week.

Quick Hits

Colorado School of Mines is the only unbeaten team in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference at 9-0. It is the first time the Orediggers have started the season with nine consecutive wins. … West Liberty senior guard Corey Pelle earned West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player-of-the-Week honors for the second consecutive week after compiling 24 points, nine assists and eight rebounds in just 24 minutes during a 130-103 win against West Virginia Wesleyan. Pelle is a key part of a Hilltopper offense that leads the nation in scoring with 128.3 points per game. … Seattle Pacific senior Chris Banchero netted a career-high 42 points while accounting for more than half of the Falcons’ scoring in an 81-68 victory at Dominican (Calif.), the most points by a SPU player since 2006.